We recently connected with Hannah Le and have shared our conversation below.
Alright, Hannah thanks for taking the time to share your stories and insights with us today. Parents play a huge role in our development as youngsters and sometimes that impact follows us into adulthood and into our lives and careers. Looking back, what’s something you think you parents did right?
My mom does sewing alterations in Houston, and she taught me at a very young age how to sew. Watching her make use out of every piece of fabric or scrap of material is how I got introduced to upcycling.
Upcycling is using unwanted materials as part of a new product. Because repurposing or reworking fashion was always a part of my life, it’s how I founded RE.STATEMENT, the online marketplace of upcycled clothing.
Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.
It doesn’t take a saint to be sustainable.
At RE.STATEMENT, bold designers and small businesses create beauty from chaos to reduce the 84% of clothes that become trash. Engineering the circular economy of fashion, they buy or sell original, upcycled clothing: new clothes made from used or unwanted material, for buyers who recognize art when they see it.
To find the most unique yet sustainable clothing, check out https://shoprestatement.com.
We’d love to hear your thoughts about selling platforms like Amazon/Etsy vs selling on your own site.
RE.STATEMENT is its own e-commerce platform specifically for small businesses, designers, and artists who upcycle clothing.
We built our platform because so many designers were getting lost in the competition they had on Etsy, Depop, and Poshmark. While those marketplaces are awesome at doing what they’re focused on (for example, homemade goods, thrifted clothes, used brands, etc), they are too broad to focus on designers who upcycle.
We believe that the designers and artists who spark a conversation, whether about your outfit or planet, should be ones that are found first. In a world where so many people want to be unique but also sustainable, RE.STATEMENT is the first marketplace they want to shop on.
How did you put together the initial capital you needed to start your business?
I worked a lot in the first few years after I graduated college. During the COVID-19 pandemic, it was easier to not spend too much money on things, so I saved up a lot of money to start entrepreneurial projects or “adventures.”
From there, it became a game. Use $100 this week to start selling a new product, then use the proceeds from that endeavor to start another company, and repeat. After a few runs at testing out my entrepreneurial skills, I made the goal of starting my own startup in 2022.
Using my savings even to this day, I’ve created enough runway to build out RE.STATEMENT as much as I can before I seek additional sources of funding.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://shoprestatement.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/re.statement/
- Facebook: https://facebook.com/restatement
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/restatement
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/shopRESTATEMENT
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@re.statement
- Other: TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@re.statement Follow us on social media and DM us a picture of any outfit you like, and we’ll send you a $10 gift card!
Image Credits
Hannah Le, RE.STATEMENT